Acts 19

1 While Apollos [a Jewish Christian leader] was at Corinth [a city in Greece], Paul passed through [traversed, went from one side to the other] the interior [upper, more remote] and came to Ephesus [a city in Asia Minor]. There he found [discovered, met] some disciples [learners, followers of Christ] word study 2 and asked them, “Did you receive [get, obtain, or accept] the Holy [set apart, sacred] Spirit [the vital principle, divine breath] when you became [trusted, had faith in] believers [those who have faith, disciples]?” “No,” they answered, “we have not even [never, not at all] heard [listened, understood] that there is [exists, is present] a Holy [sanctified, dedicated] Spirit [the divine presence, God’s essence].” word study 3 “Into what [toward which purpose, for what reason], then [at that time, therefore], were you baptized [immersed, fully wet]?” Paul asked [said, spoke]. “The baptism [ceremonial act of washing, immersion] of John [the Baptist, who preached repentance],” they replied [said, answered]. word study 4 Paul explained: “John’s [baptism of repentance, a change of heart] baptism [ceremonial act of washing or immersion] was a baptism of [turning away from sin, feeling sorry for wrongdoing] repentance. He told the people [a group of individuals, a nation] to believe [have faith, trust] in the One [Christ, the Messiah] coming after him, that is, in [the son of God, the Savior] Jesus.” word study 5 On hearing [with understanding and obedience] this, they were baptized [fully immersed] into [toward, for the purpose of] the name [character and authority] of the Lord [Master] Jesus [God is salvation]. word study 6 And when Paul [the Roman apostle] laid his hands [as a symbol of imparting spiritual power] on them, the Holy [set apart, dedicated to God] Spirit [the vital principle, mental disposition of God] came upon [to rest on, to be bestowed on] them, and they spoke [to utter words, to declare] in tongues [languages, dialects] and [as a connecting word, joining ideas] prophesied [to speak under inspiration from God, to foretell]. word study 7 There were [approximately] about twelve men [adult males, husbands] in all [every one, the total number, as it were]. word study 8 Then Paul went into [the Jewish meeting place, synagogue] the synagogue and spoke [confidently and freely, with boldness] boldly there for three [a period of, a duration of] months, arguing [reasoning and persuading, disputing] persuasively about [concerning, regarding] the kingdom [God’s royal power and dominion] of God [the one true deity]. word study 9 But when some of them [were hardened, became stubborn] stubbornly refused to believe and publicly [spoke evil of] maligned the Way [the path to salvation, the Christian faith], Paul took his disciples and left the synagogue [the Jewish meeting place] to conduct daily [every day, consistently] discussions [reasoning, disputing] in the lecture hall [school] of Tyrannus [a ruler with absolute power, a dictator]. word study 10 This [specific period of time, a particular duration] continued for two [a couple of, a pair of] years, so that everyone [all people, every individual] who lived [dwelt, resided] in the province [region, territory] of Asia [the Roman province of Asia Minor], Jews [people of Jewish descent, Israelites] and Greeks [non-Jews, Gentiles] alike [together, equally], heard [listened to, received] the word [message, logos] of the Lord [God, the supreme authority]. word study 11 God [the one true deity, Creator] did extraordinary [special, unusual, beyond the ordinary] miracles [works of power, amazing deeds] through [by means of, because of] the hands [instruments, agency] of Paul [the apostle, originally named Saul], word study 12 so that even handkerchiefs [face cloths] and aprons [protective coverings] that had touched him were taken to the sick [weak, feeble], and the diseases [illnesses, maladies] and evil [bad, morally wrong] spirits [breath, vital principle] left [went out, departed] them. word study 13 Now there were some itinerant [traveling from place to place] Jewish [from the tribe of Judah] exorcists [those who cast out evil spirits] who tried to invoke [call upon, use the authority of] the name of the Lord [master] Jesus [the Greek name for Joshua, meaning God is salvation] over those with evil [morally bad] spirits. They would say, “I bind [adjure, command] you by Jesus [the one whom Paul preaches], whom Paul [the Roman apostle] proclaims [preaches, heralds].” word study 14 Seven sons [children, descendants] of Sceva, a Jewish [from the tribe of Judah] chief priest [high-priest, spiritual leader], were doing [performing, attempting] this [healing, exorcism]. word study 15 Eventually, one of the evil [evil/bad, morally wrong] spirits answered them, “Jesus [Joshua, God is salvation] I know [have knowledge of, understand], and I know [am acquainted with] about Paul [the Roman apostle], but who [which ones, what kind] are you [plural, addressing them directly]?” word study 16 Then the man [with a demonic spirit, under evil influence] with the evil [wicked, morally wrong] spirit jumped on them [leaped upon, sprang upon] and overpowered [mastered, gained control over] them all [completely, utterly]. The attack [assault, violent onset] was so violent [fierce, intense] that they ran out of the house [fled from the dwelling, escaped] naked [without clothing, exposed] and wounded [injured, harmed, traumatized]. word study 17 This [specific event, notable sign] became known to all [every single one, the entire population] the Jews [people from Judah, Israelites] and Greeks [Gentiles, non-Jews] living in Ephesus [a major city in Asia Minor], and fear [deep reverence, alarm] came over all [every single one, the entire population] of them. So the name [reputation, character] of the Lord [Master, God] Jesus [God is salvation] was held in high [great, profound] honor [respect, magnified]. word study 18 Many [a large number, numerous] who had believed [trusted, had faith] now came forward [approached, drew near], confessing [acknowledging, agreeing] and disclosing [reporting, announcing] their deeds [actions, works, things done]. word study 19 And a number [several, many] of those who had practiced [been experts in, habitually done] magic arts [curious arts, sorcery] brought their books [scrolls, writings] and burned [completely consumed, destroyed] them in front of [before, in the presence of] everyone [all people]. When the value [price] of the books was calculated [added up, counted], the total came to fifty thousand [five myriads] drachmas [pieces of silver]. word study 20 So the word [Logos, divine message] of the Lord [God or Master] powerfully [with great strength and vigor] continued to spread [grow and increase] and prevail [be strong and overcome, have authority]. word study 21 After these things [had been fulfilled, were ended] had happened, Paul [the apostle, originally named Saul] resolved [purposed, made a decision] in the Spirit [the Holy Spirit, the divine guide] to go to Jerusalem [the capital of Palestine, a significant city] after he had passed through [traversed, traveled] Macedonia [a region in Greece] and Achaia [a region in ancient Greece]. “After I have been [visited, gone to] there [to that place],” he said, “I must [it is necessary, I am compelled] see [visit, experience] Rome [the capital city of Italy, an important location] as well [also, in addition].” word study 22 He sent [dispatched on a mission] two of his helpers [ministers, servants], Timothy [dear to God] and Erastus [a faithful companion], to Macedonia [a region in Greece], while he stayed [remained, tarried] for a time [a season, a while] in the province of Asia [the Roman province of Asia Minor]. word study 23 About [at that point in time, during that period] that time [season, opportunity] there arose [came into being, occurred] a great [intense, severe] disturbance [commotion, uproar] about [concerning, regarding] the Way [road, path, the Christian faith]. word study 24 It began with a silversmith [a skilled craftsman] named Demetrius who made [crafted, created] silver [precious metal] shrines [temples] of Artemis [a goddess], bringing [providing] much [no small] business [work] to the craftsmen [skilled workers]. word study 25 Demetrius assembled [gathered together, called together] the craftsmen [workmen, laborers], along with the workmen [workers, laborers] in related trades [similar occupations, like business]. “Men [adult males, husbands],” he said, “you know [understand, are aware] that this business [work, occupation] is our source [means, origin] of prosperity [wealth, abundance, euopia]. word study 26 And you can see [with your eyes and understand] and hear [with your ears and comprehend] that not only [alone, exclusively] in Ephesus, but in nearly [almost, very close to] the whole province of Asia, Paul [this man, the apostle] has persuaded [convinced, won over] a great number of people to turn away [reject, abandon]. He says [declares, proclaims] that man-made [crafted by human hands, created by men] gods [idols, false deities] are no [not, none] gods at all [not divine, lacking divine nature]. word study 27 There is danger [peril, risk] not only that our business [craft, trade] will fall into disrepute [be set at nought, lose respect], but also that the temple [sacred place, shrine] of the great [magnificent, revered] goddess Artemis [Diana, a female deity] will be discredited [despised, made of no account] and her majesty [greatness, splendor] deposed [brought down, removed from power]—she who is worshiped [revered, adored] by all [the whole, entire] the province of Asia [the Roman province of Asia Minor] and the whole [entire, all-inclusive] world [the inhabited earth, the cosmos].” word study 28 When the men heard [and understood, with spiritual perception] this, they were [filled with intense anger, full of wrath] enraged and began shouting, “Great [magnificent, revered] is Artemis [the goddess Diana, a pagan deity] of the Ephesians [the people of Ephesus, devoted to her worship]!” word study 29 Soon the whole [entire, all] city [a town with walls] was in [filled with, characterized by] disarray [confusion, tumult]. They rushed [stampeded] together into the [public] theatre [a place for gatherings], dragging [seizing] with them Gaius [a Christian from Macedonia] and Aristarchus [a fellow believer], Paul’s [the apostle] traveling [journeying] companions [fellow travelers] from [hailing from, originating in] Macedonia [a region in the north]. word study 30 Paul [the Roman apostle] wanted [was minded, had a deliberate intention] to go [enter, step into] before [toward, into the presence of] the assembly [people, crowd, community, in the stadium, to speak to the people], but [then, however] the disciples [learners, followers of Jesus] would [did] not [completely, utterly] allow [permit, suffer] him [Paul, the apostle]. word study 31 Even some [certain] of Paul’s friends [who were his companions, being friendly] who were officials [Asiarchs, high-ranking rulers] of the province [region, area] of Asia sent word [a message, having sent] to him, begging [pleading, entreating] him not [lest, by no means] to venture [adventure, put himself in danger] into the theatre [amphitheater, public gathering place]. word study 32 Meanwhile the assembly [a group of people gathered together, crowd] was in turmoil [confusion, chaos]. Some were shouting one thing [something, a matter] and some another [something different, a different matter], and most of them did not even know [were unaware, had no understanding] why they were there [had come together, assembled]. word study 33 The Jews [from the tribe of Judah, Jewish people] in the crowd [large group of people, multitude] pushed Alexander [a common Jewish name, a leader] forward [to the front, to prominence] to explain himself [to give an account, to defend], and he motioned [signaled, beckoned] for silence [quiet, stillness] so he could make his defense [apology, justification] to the people [the crowd, the populace]. word study 34 But when they realized [came to know deeply, perceived] that he was a Jew [a person from Judah, of Jewish descent], they all shouted [cried out loudly, with one voice] in unison [as one, with a single voice] for about two [a couple of, a pair of] hours: “Great [magnificent, of great importance] is Artemis [the goddess of the Ephesians, Diana] of the Ephesians [the people of Ephesus, those who worshiped Artemis]!” word study 35 Finally the city clerk [town secretary, chief administrator] quieted [calmed, appeased] the crowd [multitude, large group] and declared, “Men of Ephesus [citizens of Ephesus, inhabitants], doesn’t everyone know [isn’t it common knowledge] that the city of Ephesus [the metropolis, the capital] is guardian [temple keeper, protector] of the temple [sacred building, place of worship] of the great [mighty, powerful] Artemis [the goddess, Diana] and of her image [statue, idol], which fell [came down, descended] from heaven [the sky, the celestial realm]? word study 36 Since these things [cannot be denied] are undeniable [indisputable], you [as individuals] ought to be [remain] calm [quiet] and not do [perform] anything [no action] rash [reckless, without thinking]. word study 37 For [as a reason, to explain] you have brought [led, guided] these men [adult males, husbands] here, though they have neither [not one or the other] robbed [stolen from, committed sacrilege against] our temple [holy place, sacred building] nor [not one or the other] blasphemed [spoken evil of, shown disrespect to] our goddess [female deity, idol]. word study 38 So if Demetrius [a silversmith, craftsman] and his fellow craftsmen [skilled workers, artisans] have a complaint [a matter, a grievance] against anyone, the courts [places of judgment, law courts] are open [available, accessible] and proconsuls [Roman officials, governors] are available [present, ready to serve]. Let them bring charges [accuse, implead] against one another [mutually, in a legal context] there [in the courts, before the authorities]. word study 39 But if [in the event that, supposing] you are seeking [searching for, inquiring about] anything [something, a matter] beyond [in addition to, apart from] this, it must be settled [determined, decided] in a [lawful, regular] legal assembly [gathering, meeting]. word study 40 For we are in jeopardy [in danger, at risk] of being charged with rioting [uprising, insurrection] for today’s [this day’s] events, and we have no justification [no cause, no reason] to account for this commotion [turmoil, disturbance, a plot or gathering].” word study 41 After he had said [spoken, uttered] this [these things], he dismissed [released, set free] the assembly [gathering, crowd, a group of people gathered together]. word study